Page 1255 - Veterinary Immunology, 10th Edition

VetBooks.ir Systemic Lupus Erythematosus

SLE is a complex disease syndrome (or perhaps even multiple
diseases) that has been described in humans, other primates, mice,

horses, dogs, and cats. It is characterized by a broad and
bewildering diversity of different symptoms and a wide variety of
disease courses as symptoms flare and recede over time. The factors
that cause lupus are complex and poorly defined (Fig. 38.2). Its
development is affected by environmental factors, including

infectious agents, hormones, drugs, food, and the intestinal
microbiota in association with the effects of many different genes.
Patients develop multiple autoantibodies, changes in T cell

function, defective phagocytosis, impaired apoptosis, multiorgan
inflammation, and oncogene expression.

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